resolving power

noun

1. Optics. the ability of an optical device to produce separate images of close objects.
2. Photography. the degree to which a lens or photographic emulsion is able to define the details of an image.

resolving power

noun

1. Also calledresolution physics
   1. the ability of a microscope, telescope, or other optical instrument to produce separate images of closely placed objects
   2. the ability of a spectrometer to separate two adjacent peaks in a spectrum
2. photog the ability of an emulsion to show up fine detail in an image

Word History and Origins

Origin of resolving power¹

First recorded in 1875–80

Example Sentences

"This is unprecedented and entirely due to Webb's higher resolving power!"

From Science Daily

Thus, as you increase the wavelength from the optical to the millimeter range, you have to dramatically increase the size of the telescope to achieve the same resolving power.

From Scientific American

In optics, the resolving power of an instrument is the smallest distance at which two closely spaced objects can be separated.

From Nature

Scanners with even higher field strengths are expected to have resolving power that is at least double that of the 7-T devices.

From Nature

The limited resolving power of astronomical instruments usually means that we don't get to see any details on objects like distant stars.

From Scientific American